Results 3,301-3,320 of 7,359 for speaker:Katherine Zappone

Other Questions: Family Resource Centres (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: Family resource centres play a really important role in communities across the country. I am personally convinced by the work they do in identifying and providing the services most needed by their communities. It is for this reason that the Government has provided additional funding of almost €3 million for family resource centres in 2018. As part of this allocation, I am pleased to...

Other Questions: Family Resource Centres (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I am very pleased to engage with the Deputy on this issue. I understand and I am aware of the concerns about some family resource centres throughout the country. I have an absolute commitment to and an understanding of the incredible work done by family resource centres. Therefore, I was determined to ensure we would be able to invest more next year, as well as making more support...

Other Questions: Family Resource Centres (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: As regards Quarryvale family resource centre and as the Deputy is aware, the funding of €86,478 covers the salaries of a full-time co-ordinator, a part-time development worker and a part-time administrator. When Quarryvale entered the programme in 2005, its original budget was set at €39,777. Whether the same criteria are used to determine the annual funding of family resource...

Other Questions: Early Years Strategy Publication (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures, the national policy framework for children and young people, contains a commitment to publish Ireland's first-ever national early years strategy. The ten-year cross-Government strategy will focus on the period of early childhood from birth to five and cover all aspects of children's lives. Given the importance of the first five years for childhood...

Other Questions: Early Years Strategy Publication (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I thank the Deputy. The first area she identified relates to whether we are being strategic. We do not yet have a strategy. As regards why it has been delayed, the commitment to publish the strategy coincided with a commitment to totally reform the early childhood care and education sector in Ireland. As the Deputy is aware, my Department has been engaged in many initiatives and a...

Other Questions: Early Years Strategy Publication (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I assure the Deputy that an implementation plan will be part of the strategy. We will draw on the learning we have gained from the experience and cross-Departmental work that has been carried out, in particular in the context of the Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures national ten-year strategy whereby high-level officials gather every quarter under my chairmanship and have worked together to...

Other Questions: Youth Services Funding (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: Funding to staff-led youth services has generally been targeted at areas of disadvantage and not allocated in proportion to the youth population of a county. That has had an impact on Laois's funding relative to other counties. Laois youth services received €86,803 in funding in 2017 under the special projects for youth scheme. Under the scheme, grant aid is made available in...

Other Questions: Youth Services Funding (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I am aware, not just from the Deputy's question but also from my work, of the significant level of disadvantage in County Laois. As the Deputy says, there has been a certain amount of investment, particularly in the special projects for youth scheme. I have talked about other investment in County Laois, but we are focusing, in particular, on the special projects for youth scheme. The...

Other Questions: Youth Services Funding (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: Exactly.

Other Questions: Youth Services Funding (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I will check. I understand the points made by the Deputy.

Other Questions: Youth Services Funding (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: There has been a new mapping exercise and a profiling that gives us additional information, acknowledging the level of disadvantage in County Laois. The Deputy has pointed to the fact that applications have been made. I am trying to indicate the support of my Department to ensure successful applications can be made in the future. A general amount of money is made available and we then have...

Other Questions: Foster Care Supports (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I have no plans to change the rate of the foster care allowance at this time. However, my Department has begun an extensive review of the Child Care Act 1991 and will examine foster care arrangements as part of this review. It will have regard to income support measures available to foster families generally. I acknowledge foster carers as the backbone of child care services. Foster...

Other Questions: Foster Care Supports (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I do not know when the rates were last reviewed but I will find that out for the Deputy.

Other Questions: Foster Care Supports (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: If it is the case, as he suggests, that the rates have not been reviewed recently, it is even more important that this should be done in the context of the extensive review of the Child Care Act in which my Department is engaged. The points the Deputy has raised are timely and all of them circle around the extraordinary contribution foster carers make to the protection and care of children...

Other Questions: Foster Care Supports (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The Deputy has made his points very well. As I said, they are timely in the context of the review being conducted within my Department. The Deputy referred in particular to the income supports that are provided to those who take on this important and special role on behalf of the State. As I set out in my reply, there are other forms of support in addition to income support that are part...

Other Questions: Child Care Services Funding (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I propose to take Questions Nos. 45 and 60 together. An allocation of €6.86 million was secured in budget 2018 for my Department's capital funding programme. As in 2017, this will be allocated to early years and school age child care capital projects. An official announcement on the specification of the capital programme for 2018 is due to be made in the coming week and will see...

Other Questions: Child Care Services Funding (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The total capital budget allocation for 2016 and 2017 was increased during each programme's run-in response to the extraordinary levels of demand from providers. Those increases were achieved through moving funds that arose out of savings and underspends elsewhere in my Department. For 2017, the total allocation ended up being €12.4 million. While the current capital allocation for...

Other Questions: Child Care Services Funding (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I will have my eye on that, which is all I can say for now.

Other Questions: Homeless Persons Supports (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: I propose to take Questions Nos. 47 and 51 together. I thank Deputy Broughan for the excellent questions. I believe the Deputy is aware that I am committed to helping children and families as part of the whole-of-Government response to the problem of homelessness. I believe that living in emergency accommodation such as hotels and bed and breakfast accommodation impacts negatively on the...

Other Questions: Homeless Persons Supports (28 Nov 2017)

Katherine Zappone: The Deputy is absolutely correct that the Ministers should be, and are, held accountable. I appreciate the Deputy's questions. He has raised some of them with me previously. On the question of researching and studying the mental health and well-being of the children, I agree with the issues identified by Deputy Broughan. It is not good for the mental health and well-being of young...